Manolo for the Brides

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Possibly the best day of the year to wow one’s sweetie with something dark, like a unique black diamond ring or a sweet yet sultry black pearl necklace!

Okay, people, repeat after me. “A bride should not resemble a mock up of a homecoming queen or Miss America’s body double.” Seriously. I’ve been researching bridal baubles for a friend of mine and it seems that the world of wedding wear is overrun with blazingly white four strand faux pearl chokers, giant multi-level rhinestone earrings, and two inch wide bracelets that look like miniature pageant tiaras. I get it. Brides want to look glamorous. Who doesn’t?

But, really, what’s more glamorous: A simple pair of precious or semi-precious gem stud earrings paired with a matching pendant necklace? Or a rhinestone replica of that blue diamond necklace from the movie Titanic?

Here’s a good rule of thumb: If your gown is highly embellished, stick to simple jewelry. And if your gown presents a simple, unadorned silhouette, your jewelry should get bigger and more elaborate. Good taste and personal preference playing key roles in both instances, of course.

What constitutes simple, yet glamorous? How about dyed freshwater pearl earrings?

Or understated diamond studs?

If you’re in the market for hairstyle inspiration, you’re in luck. The ever wonderful SterlingSpider sent me a link to a web page full of images of up-do’s, loose styles, and everything in between. When I say ‘full of images,’ I mean that it is wicked image heavy, so keep in mind that the page may take a while to load. Also, it appears to be in Polish.

This is an old story but too interesting not to highlight: To ensure a bachelor son’s contentment in the afterlife, Chinese parents will search for a dead woman to be his bride and, once a corpse is obtained, bury the pair together as a married couple. Apparently, the practice of pairing off dead offspring through posthumous nuptials (called minghun) is common in China, where grieving parents will burn paper representations of luxury goods to ensure that their kids are bling-bling’un it up in the afterlife.

In case you hadn’t already heard (and then, lucky you) Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise fill finally tie the knot on November 18 in Italy. Holmes will walk down the aisle wearing a gown designed by the fabulous Giorgio Armani. Will Holmes’ parents attend? Will Xenu come down from the heavens to condemn the union? I guess we’ll find out!

If you haven’t already had a gander at the Taköhl treasure ring (kudos to the reader who sent the link!), go check out the Taköhl web site. Each white gold, yellow gold, rose gold, green gold, or platinum ring is crafted of two individual pieces - a hinged band opens to display a hidden custom message. I love them!

Finally, remember my post featuring a selection of money grubbing…er…marketting web sites created by brides and grooms looking for financial assistance? The Hopeful Honeymooners have made $4360 (out of $10,000). The Wedding On A Penny people have collected 158,214 pennies (out of two million). And the Grooms Gift grew to $72.90. The newest gimmick I’ve seen comes from a man who hopes to raise enough money through donations (no ads here) to buy a Super Bowl ad time slot and then propose to his girlfriend on a Super Bowl commercial. He claims he has raised a whopping $61,931…which sounds like a lot but only represents about 3% of the cost of one of those ad spots.

Now that things are getting a little chilly, at least in my neck of the woods, my thoughts run toward formal wear that has a little more substance. Not that the sleeves on this gorgeous Maggie Sottero Delustered Satin gown will do much to keep your arms warm. But, hey, it’s better than nothing, right? I’d probably suck it up and freeze for a chance to wear it, as it has a lot to offer, including detachable three-quarter illusion sleeves, a corset back and a chapel train. The bodice detailing alone would make a frosty trip down the aisle worth it - think Swarovski crystals, seed beads, sequins, and bugle beads. And it comes in a wide range of hue combos, like white with pewter accents and light gold.

Conclusion: This gown won’t keep you toasty but it will make you happy!

Don’t like the bridal tiaras you see in the stores? Yeah, me neither. Too busy. Plus, brides do not equal homecoming queens. Or maybe you found the perfect headband tiara only to wish it was a few inches smaller and a comb-style tiara instead? The easy answer to your quandary is: Have a tiara made especially for you.

The ladies at The Younique Boutique will custom make a tiara based on your choice of base color (gold or silver tone), crystal color and quality (Swarovski or Czech), and pearl color. The Bethany style (shown above) is flexible, lightweight, and versatile, as it can be constructed as a 2.5 inch mini comb, a six inch comb, a nine inch tiara, or 14 inch halo or bun wrap.

With plenty of pearl colors to choose from (ivory, rose, light blue, lilac, mint green, midnight blue, pink, burgundy, and more) as well a boatload of potential crystal colors (amethyst, pink, light sapphire, sapphire, peridot, dark amethyst, aquamarine, emerald, ruby, garnet, and jet black, among others), you can match your tiara to your gown, your bouquet, your attendant’s colors, or even your eyes!

I love Spanx. And as a fairly recent Spanx convert, when a reader asked me to recommend some “serious, comfortable, sweat absorbing panties” she could wear under a two-ton, multi-layer, hot as heck wedding gown, I immediately said, “Spanx.” Sure, lace and frills are great on your wedding night, but do you really want to layer a fairly complex get-up like the Honeymoon Collection ‘Something Blue’ corset set

Under something like this weighty Reem Acra gown in satin?

Not that you could, of course. I’m just using it as an extreme example. Considering that many wedding gowns feature a mind-boggling assortment of ties, ribbons, beads, bustles, and so forth, why make wedding day dressing more daunting by adding in another later of complexity? Not to mention that putting a multi-layer undergarment underneath a multi-layer gown is a recipe for peak-level perspiration.

Spanx to the rescue!

The Hide & Sleek Lace Trim panty even has a pretty bit of Italian lace that camouflages its heavy-duty, moisture-wicking, tummy-shaping intentions.

Then again, if you’re all for function over form, I’d advise future brides to consider underwear made specifically for runners. Panties like the Lavinia Activewear seamless brief are going to keep you sweat free and line free while staying where they are meant to, IYKWIM.

Oh, and the reader above is one of the smartest brides-to-be on earth, IMO. Sensible yet sexy, she plans to covertly change out of her utility undies and into something more eye-catching for the, ahem, wedding afterparty.

Alright, this is only one grainy image of the $20 million wedding cake created by Mimi So Jewelers and cake designer Nahid La Patisserie Artistique. It may be truly beautiful in real life. But is anyone else not impressed?

The convection (billed as the most expensive cake ever) is inedible, as it is coated in far too many diamonds for the average cake-lover to diligently pick them out and push them to the side of the plate. And while it may be the main attraction at Beverly Hills’ luxury brands bridal show “Weddings in the Grand Tradition,” I think it looks kind of like the bottom of an old dress with plastic flowers glued on. Oh, and some gems scattered here and there.

I much prefer the less expensive $1.6 million fruitcake that was part of a Japanese exhibit called “Diamonds: Nature’s Miracle.” It featured only 223 diamonds on its fondant icing outer layer and was labeled edible by its creator.

UPDATE: There is a pic of the full $20 million wedding cake at Luxurylaunches.com. And it’s still ugly!

It’s bad enough to be sick on days you have to work (like I am today) and even worse to be sick on a beautiful weekend day. But can you imagine waking up on your wedding day with a headache, the sniffles, a hacking cough, and an overwhelming feeling of fatigue? The picture’s not pretty.

If you spent the last year planning, have more than 100 guests coming in from out of town, and more non-refundable vendor contracts than you can count on one hand’s worth of fingers, chances are you’re going to go ahead with your nuptials no matter what. Well, almost. If you’re too sick to stand, bazooka barfing, in labor, bleeding internally, or strapped to a hospital gurney, you should probably postpone your nuptials.

A cold or a headache, however, won’t ruin your big day, provided you’re ready for them. That’s why you need to make sure you have a wedding-day emergency kit stocked with everything from antacids to aspirin. I know I’ve discussed the all powerful emergency kit before, but it bears repeating. Only you know what germs you’re particular prone to hosting, so only you know what medications you should pack in your kit.

But remember that you only need a few of each remedy, so a pretty clutch will do fine. You can assign a bridesmaid, the MOB, or a good friend to keep watch over it during the ceremony and to make sure it arrives safely at the reception. The Carlo Fellini Brasilia Bag is suitably formal and suitably small - perfect for toting pills, pins, and so forth.

But if you want to carry your anti-sniffle supplies in something a little kitschier, grab one of these tiny totes:

Or this funky mirrored bag:

Never forget, however, that the best offense is a good defense. If you sleep well, stay active, and eat nutritiously in the weeks leading up to your wedding, you’re bound to feel great!

Ever been in love with the overall design of a ring but still wish you could change just one little teeny thing about it? Like the color, width, or type of gemstone, perhaps? With some jewelers, you have two choices: Accept the piece as is or move on. Should you choose the latter option, you could then get a ring custom designed from scratch - and potentially pay out the nose for the privilege.

Luckily for those in search of rings (wedding or otherwise), many jewelry designers offer their clients a range of designs with customizable options. Novell Design Studios makes all of their wedding bands to order and allows brides- and grooms-to-be to choose whether to have their rings crafted in platinum, 18kt gold, or white, yellow or pink 14kt gold. They can also personalize their wedding bands with decorative finishes, diamonds and colored stones. Features from different rings can even be combined to make an entirely new design. Cool, right?

This ring was supersized to include 15-point round diamonds and embellished with a 18kt yellow gold edge.

On this ring, the twisted inserts were removed and replaced with 2-point diamond channels.

And here, the original diamonds were switched out in favor of heirloom rubies belonging to the client!

Of course, it seems from some of their samples that customization is just another way for people to create huge, bling-encrusted jewelry that would simply consume a smaller finger. Thus confirming my theory that rings, in general, are getting out of control. What’s wrong with something simple like this: